Tis Friday and there appears to be a higher than normal amount of news traffic this morning....though some of it is talking about the same topic....the formation of the new government to be coming within the next 48 hours....something that we've been seeing promised for the past 7-10 days now...."just 2 more days"...."just 48 hours"....well....the 10th draws ever closer...is all I will say regarding their "48 hours." Urgent .. A roundtable meeting tomorrow to discuss the program of al- Abadi Government

First notice of an "urgent" meeting to be held today to discuss Abadi's government....we shall see what truly transpires from this that is so urgent.....

Paradise negotiating alliance: the formation of the government will be completed during the next 48 hours

So the National Alliance is announcing that Abadi will have his government ready to be announced during the next 48 hour period....isn't that coincidental with the travels of Obama and Kerry at the moment....we shall see how this progresses.....it would appear that once the government is firmly in place then demands from the other blocs will be addressed. Abadi calls for political blocs to present candidates for the ministries during the next two days

Ok, color me stupid....but Abadi has already given the blocs three days to submit their candidates for his government what gives with this new 2 day edict from him.....if the blocs are dragging their feet....shame on them....be a part of the process....get involved.....I'm not seeing this as a delay tactic by Abadi as much as the other blocs not providing worthwhile names for his ministry....remember he has been adamant about competency and integrity. Financial difficulties faced by the government impede approval of the draft budget

This appears to be a conflict between hangers on of the old budget process versus members of the new temporary budget committee that are interested in pushing forward new plans for the 2014 budget....this will be worth watching to see who actually wins this battle....but my prediction is on the new kids on the street...the new blood in Parliament as the winners.

Obama stressed the need for Iraq's Sunnis feel they are representatives of the government of effective

A huge revelation on Obama's part.....to make the Sunni's feel as though they are a part of the new government.....very astute indeed.....this is something the new Parliament, the new President....and the Prime Minister-to-be....have been working towards....guess that some news just travels to certain locations slower than others.

The disappearance of a tanker loaded with oil from the Kurdistan monitoring equipment off Texas

The Coast Guard says that the tanker holding nearly 100 million barrels of Kurd crude oil has "disappeared" from the Gulf of Mexico.....what has likely happened is they have turned off their tracking device....and then perhaps sailed to an area outside of the watchful eye of the Coast Guard as they continue to await orders of what to do with their cargo.

Oil: Kurdistan refrain from attending the meetings of the Federal Court

The juggling act over who has the rights to sell the Kurdistan crude oil continues as the Kurds stay away from any Federal Court proceedings on the matter in Baghdad....the government of course claims the right to the oil and its sale....but the Kurds think and are attempting to do otherwise....meanwhile in the US the matter is at somewhat of a stalemate.

Kurdish Deputy reveal an agreement with Baghdad on the survival of the Peshmerga in the disputed areas

This article is funny.....the Kurds may "think" they have an agreement with Baghdad over the Peshmerga being in disputed locations and areas...but there isn't any evidence of agreement from Baghdad in the article itself....makes it sound like a one way story for the time being.

Number of readings: 7 Abadi underlines the importance of providing blocs women candidates to fill the seats and ministerial

Abadi is making a pitch for women's equality in that he wants to see some women candidates for the ministerial positions he is trying to currently fill....he continues to meet with other blocs on a more or less continuous basis to gather the names the blocs want considered for ministerial positions. Chihod: the rule of law to stop strongly with al-Maliki and will stand with the same force Abadi

A Member of Parliament for the State of Law Coalition has stated they will cease their strong support of Maliki and will place the same force behind Abadi as he works to seat his government.....there comes a time when the dead horse must be given up.....speaking of Maliki.....he has been ominously quiet of late....makes me nervous and wondering what he might be up to at the moment. Obama: pressing for the formation of an inclusive government in Iraq .. and Kerry to the Middle East to establish an alliance to fight Daash

These words of Obama are old and stale, especially when he admitted yesterday that he has no strategy to deal with ISIS.....that is the real sore spot for Iraqis.....continued rhetoric about the need for more than just a military answer.....that works where the Sunni's are concerned....they do need to be won back over so their might can be used to fight the terrorist regime that has invaded Iraq for sure....but it will take far more than just political tactics to put a final end to this terrorist threat that resides in Iraq today.....someone needs to wake up to that realization and move forward in the appropriate manner.

Abadi reaffirms its commitment to the directives of the supreme religious authority to form a government with wide acceptance

Abadi has made clear his commitment to the religious authority within Iraq and the need to provide as broad a government as possible that is most accepted by Iraq's from all walks of life.

News unique to publish the text of the "national paper" for the formation of the Iraqi government

The National Alliance has published a "national paper" to all political blocs urging an agreement on the formation of a new government run with a group of ministers that are chosen from as wide a group of blocs as possible....the document speaks to national unity on a number of fronts....most notably is corruption within government and on projects...then also to security of the nation from terrorists....updating of certain laws by Parliament within a three month or so time frame.....there is a strong part of the document that speaks to the need to address conflicts with the Kurds over oil, Article 140, distribution of the oil wealth...and each of these items it would appear come with a deadline or target time frame for compliance...something we haven't seen from the government in the past.....as always....."where's the beef" in all of this....or is this more empty promises that have been witnessed in the past.

90 American raid destroyed equipment worth three million dollars during the 3 weeks

It has to come with great sadness that American pilots are choosing targets of opportunity that were once American equipment that had been turned over to the Iraqi Army, who promptly gave it up as ISIS forces moved into areas like Mosul...equipment that had been built by Americans, paid for with American dollars....and bore the American flag at one point....I predict that as sad as this appears today it will fuel the fire when it come to the final chapter of what happens to the ISIS terrorists and others like them.

The government compensates ration items late to "cash allowance"

The Ministry of Commerce is providing compensation to those areas that were hit hardest by terrorist infiltration and have not received ration items due to security risks....this compensation will likely appear as a cash allowance for those who have been overlooked.

Blocks waiting for "a new agreement" to form a government: the timeframe for decisions required guarantee a parliamentary vote

Blocs across Iraq are interested in how this new government is going to be formed.....what time frames will they set to address issues that have been brought in front of Abadi....who declares what has priority....the list goes on and on....but IMO...they need to attack one thing at a time....at least for the time being....getting a government seated....get the new GOI established so that the respective ministers can commence doing what they are paid to do.

Interim Commission for approving the budget confirms that the law is still in parliament and did not send it to the government

What was it maybe a week ago we heard news that the budget had been sent back to the government....to Maliki's government.....let's get real....but no today we read that the Parliament has had the budget all along...IMO.....the Parliament is probably doing a good thing....stalling on the budget at this point....waiting to get the new government seated...then they will present to the new GOI what they believe is a workable 2014 for what is left of the year....this has been formulated and is ready for presentation...they just want it put before the correct GOI....one that has been been corrupted by years of bad leadership.

Meeting of the blocks discusses the 18 items as a card and a unified national negotiations to form a government

This article again points to the "national paper" prepared by the National Alliance that has narrowed down demands from other blocs to 18 items that are believed to be of crucial interest to all.....there appears to be a binding ceiling that will be put upon the ministerial staff of Abadi in working through these items in a timely fashion going forward....this would appear to be a far greater attempt at cohesive government entities working together in a unified manner than has been seen in Iraq since the fall of the former regime.

Peek-a-boo we are still right where we were when you saw us last.....are the Kurds finding a way to get around Baghdad yet as the world watches....but simply turning off their navigational tracking devices on these ships and then they proceed to either a port or another tanker for off loading some or all of their cargo.....the chess game has moved to the high seas it would appear. Gold trade to flourish in Iraqi Kurdistan

I see this article as being dated in it's information....much of the areas in the Kurdistan that have been targeted by terrorists have seen gold dealers shops ransacked by the terrorists....

not to say that there wouldn't be a come back in the gold trading market.....and there are definitely areas that have not been touched by terrorists....I'm sure their trade has continued....gold has been and probably always will be a marketable commodity....as long as people have the funds with which to purchase.

Taking a break from sitting Family......hope this is helpful and informative for you. Enjoy.